The effect of increased pulmonary blood flow on the pulmonary vascular bed in pigs. Increased pulmonary blood flow was produced in 1-month-old piglets by means of left pneumonectomy, arteriovenous fistulas in the neck, and a combination of both. Physiologic and histologic studies of the pulmonary vascular bed were done 1-9 months after operation. A progressive, moderate increase in pulmonary artery (PA) pressure was observed, especially between 1 and 6 months after surgery. This was flow related, i.e., the group with the highest flow (pneumonectomy plus fistula) was found to have the most prominent increase in pressure. Mean Pa pressure at 6 months was 28.7 +/- 0.07 mm Hg in this group, vs 24.4 +/- 0.48 mm Hg in the group with pneumonectomy alone and 17.2 +/- 0.48 mm Hg in controls (P less than 0.01). The pressure response to hypoxia in pigs with high pulmonary blood flow was not different from that found in control animals. Histologic studies revealed that small arteries and arterioles of pigs with high pulmonary blood flow had a decreased relative wall thickness because of dilation up to 6 months follow-up. This was flow related, the group with the highest flow having the lowest wall thickness to vessel diameter ratio; relative wall thickness (in percentage of the vessel diameter ) at 6 months was 6.1 +/- 0.44% in pigs with with pneumonectomy plus fistula, vs 9.6 +/- 0.40% in the group with pneumonectomy alone and 11.2 +/- 0.61% in controls (P less than 0.01). In the group with the highest flow, thick walled arterioles appeared at 9 months follow-up, scattered among dilated ones; between 6 and 9 months after operation, ranging from 6.1 +/- 0.44% to 11.3 +/- 0.73% (P less than 0.01). In five animals with high flow, the right PA (main branch) showed patchy intimal thickening, small cystic spaces filled with mucopolysaccharides in the media, and muscular hypertrophy.


The effect of alcohol and barbiturate on the frequency of atrial and ventricular premature beats during sleep. Repeated EEG and ECG monitoring during sleep was carried out in two subjects with ischemic heart disease and one presumably healthy control. All three displayed frequent ectopic heart beats. Two had ventricular and the third atrial premature beats. The study had two objectives: (1) to ascertain the distribution of ectopic beats among the stages of sleep; and (2) to ascertain the effect of alcohol and barbiturates on the frequency of premature beats. Both drugs are known to alter the pattern of sleep stages. It was found that neither atrial nor ventricular premature beats favored a particular sleep stage. Neither drug had a consistent effect on their frequency and there was no correlation with heart rate. For the most part premature beats were fewer on the second night of a procedure although a day filled with anxiety appeared to greatly increase the frequency of premature contractions.


What happens between an external stimulus and an overt response? A study of covert behavior. Peripheral components of feedthrough loops were psychophysiologically measured from the brain, both forelimbs, the tongue and the eyes during simple and choice reaction time tasks using linguistic and non-linguistic stimuli. Closing a microswitch with the little finger was the overt response. Covert electromyographic (EMG) responses were computer identified in the following average temporal order: generally, the earliest covert reactions were in the tongue, brain, eyes, and passive arm-hand region. Next were complex EMG events in the active limb. These covert reactions may function in feedthrough loops to generate and transmit codes during internal information processing. The passive arm-hand responses occurred significantly earlier than the onset of the covert EMG burst for closing the microswitch; perhaps there is an inhibitory response "commanding" the passive arm not to respond, before the other (active) limb can overtly respond. Mean response patterns to linguistic and non-linguistic stimuli were almost identical. Reaction time to the onset of the EMG burst for switch closing was from 40 to 95 milliseconds earlier than the usual overt reaction time measure (that to switch closing), suggesting that reaction time studies might be improved by using the onset of EMG increase as the more sensitive and precise measure.


Citrullinemia: enzymatic evidence for genetic heterogeneity. The specific activity of argininosuccinate synthetase (micromoles of 14CO2 per milligram of protein per hour) was 0.00104 and 0.00087 in fibroblasts derived from two patients with citrullinemia, and was undetectable in both fibroblasts and cultured lymphocytes from a third patient. In five obligate heterozygotes the specific activity in fibroblasts was 0.012-0.029 and in nine control subjects was 0.058 +/- 0.014 (0.030-0.076). In both control and patient cells, the maximum activity was obtained at pH 8.5 and there was no inhibition of normal argininosuccinate synthetase by any of the mutant cells.


Varying temporal placement during CS of an added stimulus correlated with non-delivery of UCS. This experiment extends Pavlov's method of contrasts for training a stimulus discrimination to the case of the cardiac conditional response in the rhesus monkey. It explores the parameter of temporal placement of an additional stimulus ("CS2") within a 10-sec CS (or "CS1"), with the appearance of the former stimulus on any trial signalling the absence of UCS (electric shock) on that trial. This experimental paradigm is a parallel to that of the "intruded stimulus" studies in operant conditioning. In both cases, several ways of describing the function of the added stimulus are possible, but all seem reducible to the same operational terms. Data were taken in the present study with respect to the form and latency of the cardiac rate changes produced by intrusion of CS2 (light), across a range of placements varying from simultaneity with CS1 (a different light) onset to two sec before UCS would have been delivered. The control of CS2 over the cardiac rate CR was occasionally exhibited with a latency as short as three beats after stimulus onset. The order of CS2 temporal placements to which a subject was exposed was a factor in determining the form of the conditioned cardiac rate response to CS1.


Growth and mineral metabolism in very low birth weight infants.  I. Comparison of the effects of two modes of NaHCO3 treatment of late metabolic acidosis. Twenty-six infants weighing less than 1,300 g at birth were divided into pairs according to birth weight (900-1,100 and 1,101-1,300 g) and gestational age ("appropriate" (AGA) = mean 31 weeks; and "small" (SGA) = mean 34 weeks).  One member of the pairs was then allocated randomly to one of two treatment regimens with oral sodium bicarbonate.  Group A was treated whenever base excess was greater than -8mEq/liter as detected on twice weekly testing and/or when suspected to be acidotic from failure to gain weight.  In group B, base excess was maintained within 1 SD of normal (-3.2 +/- 1.7 mEq/liter).  The infants received Enfalac 200 ml/kg/24 hr, at 67 cal/100 ml, with vitamin D 400 IU/24 hr added from age 2 weeks.  The following measurements were made: daily weight, weekly length, skinfold thickness, head circumference, twice weekly blood pH, PaCO2, base excess, and weekly plasma total calcium, ionic calcium, total magnesium, inorganic phosphorus, and total protein.  There were six pairs of each of AGA and SGA infants and two unpaired group A infants.  Weekly weight gains did not differ between group A and group B or between AGA and SGA.  Length increment was greater in AGA than in SGA babies (0.94 +/- 0.02 vs 0.85 +/- 0.04 cm/week) but not significantly so (P less than 0.1), and in group B babies compared to group A babies (0.973 +/- 0.029 vs 0.83 +/- 0.037 cm/week) (P less than 0.01).  Plasma pH was lower in group A (7.23 +/- 0.02) than in group B (7.30 +/- 0.02) and calcium ion activity higher (group A 2.72 +/- 0.04; group B 2.51 +/- 0.06 mEq/liter) between ages 20 and 29 days.  Plasma magnesium was higher in group A (1.77 +/- 0.04 mEq/liter) than in group B (1.56 +/- 0.06 mEq/liter) from age 20 to 39 days.  Inorganic phosphorus concentrations were consistently higher in group A than in group B, but the differences did not reach  significance.  Mean total protein concentrations did not rise above 4.5 g/100 ml and tended to be higher in babies of group A than of group B.  Bone age was retarded in all babies.  Radiographs available for 7 of 13 SGA infants were normal, whereas 6 of 11 radiographs of AGA babies showed some osteoporotic changes.


Growth and mineral metabolism in very low birth weight infants.  II. Effects of calcium supplementation on growth and divalent cations. Infants of two groups, one of 16, one of 14 infants, who weighed less than 1.3 kg at birth (mean 1.01 +/- 0.05 kg), were studied from age 14 days until they reached 1.8 kg body weight. Infants were pair-matched for gestational age and birth weight and one member was randomly allocated to two treatment groups. Infants in group A received no calcium supplement and those in group B received calcium lactate, 800 mg/kg/24 hr hr, in divided doses with each feed. All were fed "Improved" SMA, 200 ml/kg/24 hr, 160 cal/kg/24 hr, and were given a multivitamin preparation containing 500 IU vitamin D2/dose. The infants' weekly length gain did not differ between groups (1.08 +/- 0.04 cm/week vs 1.11 +/- 0.04 cm/week; mean +/- SEM). Mean weight and head cercumference increments also were similar (group A, 163 +/- 6 g/week; 1.12 +/- 0.03 cm/week; group B, 170 +/- 6 g/week and 1.18 +/- 0.03 cm/week). An increase in blood pH from 7.33 +/- 0.01 to 7.41 +/- 0.01 (P less than 0.01) in group A babies was associated with a decrease in PCO2 from 44.2 +/- 1.0 to 38.9 +/- 1.4 mm Hg. Values remained unchanged with age in group B babies...


The determination of hypoxanthine and xanthine with a PO2 electrode. A simple and rapid method for determination of the hypoxanthine and xanthine concentration in plasma and urine is described. The method is based on the principle that oxygen is consumed quantitatively when hypoxanthine and xanthine are oxidized to urate by xanthine oxidase. By using Henry's law a direct measure of the hypoxanthine and xanthine concentration is obtained. The method determines these oxypurines in volumes of 200 mul in concentrations less than 5 mumol/liter in about 5 min. The average precision in the range of 0-50 mumol/liter is 2.6 mumol/liter. Of the added hypoxanthine, 99-102% is recovered in plasma. Even though xanthine oxidase is a rather nonspecific enzyme, experiments show that this method is highly specific during physiologic conditions.


Comparison of electrophoretic mobility and membrane sialic acid content of erythrocytes from adult and umbilical cord blood. Determinations of cell electrophoretic mobility at low ionic strength and of ghost sialic acid content show that erythrocytes from umbilical cord blood and from adult donors are identical in these two glycoprotein-related properties.  Using a streak deflection electrophoresis in 16.5 mM Tris-acetic acid buffer, pH 7.4, no increased streak width indicating electrophoretic heterogeneity could be detected when mixed suspensions of adult and umbilical cord blood erythrocytes were compared with suspensions of adult cells alone.  Sialic acid content of 100 nmol/mg protein were obtained for both populations of cells.


Response to crystalline 1alpha-hydroxyvitamin D3 in vitamin D dependency. The therapeutic response to chemically synthesized 1alpha-hydroxycholecalciferol (1alpha-OH-D3) was studied in three patients with autosomal recessive vitamin D dependency (ARVDD).  The daily maintenance dose for vitamin D2, to prevent signs of vitamin D deficiency in these patients, was 40-54.4 mug/kg, or about 100 times normal (Table 1). Withdrawal of maintenance therapy with vitamin D2 resulted in the ultimate reappearance of the vitamin D depletion syndrome in patients 1 and 2 (Figs. 1 and 2).  The third patient presented with the deficiency syndrome despite adequate vitamin D nutrition and was recognized to have ARVDD.  Treatment with 1alpha-OH-D3 by mouth in all three patients at dose levels of 1-3 mug/24 hr (80-100 ng/kg) corrected hypocalcemia and suppressed parathyroid hormone-dependent renal loss of amino acids (Figs. 1, 2, and 4).  Rickets healed in 7-9 weeks on 1alpha-OH-D3 alone (Fig. 3).  The therapeutic response was rapid.  It was usually seen first in the rise of serum calcium (Figs. 5 and 6).  Withdrawal of 1alpha-OH-D3 was followed first by a fall of serum phosphorus, then by a fall in serum calcium; the latter occurred within about 2 weeks of withdrawal.  Because the synthesis of 1alpha-OH-D3 is simpler than for 1alpha,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol and because the former is an effective therapeutic analog of vitamin D hormone, we believe these studies in ARVDD reveal 1alpha-OH-D3 to be the agent of choice for treatment of this and analogous diseases.


Thyroxine (T4) immunoassay using a filter paper blood samples for screening of neonates for hypothyroidism. A rapid, sensitive radioimmunoassay for thyroxine (T4) is described which requires a specimen of dried blood on filter paper.  One milliliter of glycine-acetate buffer containing anti-T4 antibody, tracer T4, and sodium salicylate is added to a tube containing a 1/8-inch dot of the filter paper specimen.  After incubation overnight, bound and free hormone are separated by addition of dextran-coated charcoal.  Quantitation is obtained using a standard curve prepared from dots of dried blood samples with known T4 content.  The dot remains in the solution throughout the procedure.  Recovery of T4 is 95% and intra- and interassay coefficients of variation are both less than 10%.  The mean T4 content of 983 samples from the 3-day-old infants was 189 +/- 48 pg T4/dot (mean SD).  This corresponds to the T4 in 1.5 mul plasma, and thus the estimated plasma T4 in these infants is 12.6 +/- 3.2 mug T4/100 ml.  Nine neonates had repeated samples in which the T4 content was lower than 2 SD below the mean.  All of these infants had normal cord thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) concentrations and thus presumably do not have primary hypothyroidism.  The method should be useful for screening neonates (and older infants), since it can be adapted for use with the punch-index machine for automated processing, no prior extraction of T4 from the dot is required before quantitation, and the small size of the sample allows repeated tests of suspicious results.


Osteomalacia associated with anticonvulsant drug therapy in mentally retarded children. A survey of 289 severely retarded inpatients at a school for retarded children in American Fork; Utah revealed 67 patients with osteomalacia as defined by hypocalcemia, hypophosphatemia, elevated serum alkaline phosphatase levels, and appropriate bone changes. Investigation of the variables which might influence bone mineralization revealed no differences in age, sex, physical activity, sunshine exposure, or dietary intake of vitamin D between the osteomalacia and nonosteomalacia groups. However, all of the patients with osteomalacia were receiving anticonvulsant medications, either phenobarbital, diphenylhydantoin, or both. Duration of anticonvulsant therapy was the most important contributing factor to the development of osteomalacia. Seventy-five percent of patients who had received anticonvulsants for more than ten years had osteomalacia. The single most costly medical problem at the school is the treatment of pathologic bone fractures due to demineralized bone.


Persistence of the fetal cardiopulmonary circulatory pathway: survival of an infant after a prolonged course;. The first case of "idiopathic" persistence of the fetal cardiopulmonary circulatory pathway with survival after a prolonged course is documented by serial cardiac catheterizations. All previously reported infants have either markedly improved within the first week of life or subsequently died. This entity has been described in term infants with prenatal or perinatal distress who present with tachypnea and cyanosis from birth. The chest radiograph is remarkable for the absence of pulmonary parenchymal pathology and the hemoglobin and hematocrit are normal. Blood gas determinations indicate hypoxia and acidosis with or without hypercarbia. Cardiac catheterization and angiography reveal an anatomically normal heart with severe pulmonary hypertension, left ventricular pressure lower than right ventricular pressure, and right-to-left venoarterial shunting through the fetal channels (atrial and or ductal levels). It is postulated that this entity may result from antenatal factors that affect the pulmonary vasculature and its subsequent adjustment to extrauterine life. These factors may include abnormal intrauterine stress resulting in excessive hypertrophy of the pulmonary arteriolar smooth muscle, or abnormal pulmonary vascular responsiveness to the usual vasoactive stimuli before or after birth, or an immature or dysfunctioning enzyme system necessary for the normal decrease in pulmonary artery pressure.


The effect of oral alanine on blood glucose and glucagon in the human newborn infant. Plasma glucose, glucagon, and insulin responses to oral feedings of L-alanine were assessed in 44 healthy term infants during the first three days of life. Alanine administration produced significant increases in glucagon and glucose concentrations on day 1, but not on days 2 and 3. These increases occurred within 30 minutes (mean and SEM for glucagon, 127 plus or minus 7 to 219 plus or minus 16 pg/ml, P smaller than 0.001; glucose, 45 plus or minus 3 to 60 plus or minus 7 mg/100 ml, P smaller than 0.01) and persisted at the P smaller than 0.05 level at four hours. Responsiveness to alanine seemed to be related to the baseline blood glucose levels since constant infusions of glucose inhibited the response; These results indicate that the pancreatic islet alpha cell secretion mechanism(s) is functioning in the newborn.


Early intrauterine development: I. The rate of growth of Caucasian embryos and fetuses between the 6th and 20th weeks of gestation. Liberalization of abortion laws in various countries and states of Europe and America has offered an opportunity for the study of the correlations between menstrual age and the rate of bodily development of human embryos and fetuses. In several institutions where local bylaws mandated the consent of the patients requesting therapeutic abortion to pathological investigation of the products of conception, various parameters of growth were measured systematically. These included crown-rump and foot lengths and body weight. The analysis of the data indicated that in the embryosic stages of development the rate of growth is substantially slower than it had been assumed previously. In the more advanced fetal stages of development the findings supported the validity of the long-established standard of Streeter. Since the current study has been based on apparently normal gestations of healthy women, whereas earlier data had rested, to a great extent, on spontaneously aborted and extopic embryon and fetuses, it seems evident that pathological specimens are not suitable for the purpose of establishing reliable standards of normal intrauterine growth rate. The present data support the suggestion, based on various experimental and clinical observations, that pathological gestations often result from abnormal ovulations that occur at times other than the mid-cycle and that such conceptions are frequently followed by a bleeding episode that simulates menstruation. It is likely that the inclusion of a high number of such cases biased the results of earlier investigations concerning embryonic growth rate on account of the frequent incidence of erroneous menstrual histories. The material available did not permit the extension of the investigation beyond the 20th week of gestation. It appears, however, that the average growth rate in the mid-trimester may be slower than the data adopted by the American Academy of Pediatrics would indicate. The possible causes of some phenomena observed in the course of the investigation, such as unexplained scatter of growth-rate patterns at all developmental stages and discrepancies among various literary data, have been discussed in some detail. While a tentative attempt has been made to correlate the investigated parameters of fetal growth with biparietal diameters of the head, a measurement accessible to direct assessment by sonography during pregnancy, the necessity of improving these standards through a prospective study has been emphasized.


Psychological preparation for surgery pediatric patients: the effects on children's and parents' stress responses and adjustment. This clinical experiment tested variations of psychological preparation and supportive care designed to increase the adjustment of children (and their parents) hospitalized for elective surgery. Eighty-four children, aged 3 to 12, admitted for tonsillectomies were randomly assigned to one of three treatment conditions or to a control group: (1) a combination of systematic preparation, rehearsal, and supportive care conducted prior to each stressful procedure; (2) a single-session preparation conducted after admission, and (3) consistent supportive care given by one nurse at the same points as in the first condition, but including no systematic preparation or rehearsal. The children's hospital adjustment was measured by blind ratings of behavioral upset and cooperation during the blood test, medication injection, transport to surgery, induction, and postoperative fluid intake and by recovery room medications and pulse rates and time to first voiding. Post-hospital adjustment was assessed with Vernon et al.'s Post Hospital Behavior Inventory. Parent outcome measures included self-ratings for anxiety and satisfaction with information and care. As hypothesized, the results demonstrated that children who received condition one showed significantly less upset and more cooperation and their parents reported significantly greater satisfaction and less anxiety than did children or parents in the other groups. Younger children were significantly more upset and less cooperative than older children.


Endotracheal tube placement in infants determined by suprasternal palpation: a new technique. In order to decrease complications of improper endotracheal tube positioning, a method of placing the tube by palpation within the suprasternal notch was devised. The method proved to be simple and effective. The accuracy was verified by fluoroscopy and a clinical study comparing this technique with others is reported. No complications of the technique were noted. Once palpation was reliable, the proper position of the tube tip was defined. From measurements taken from routine inspiratory chest radiographs on 142 infants, it was found that a point midway between the medial ends of the clavicle (IMP) was a good position because it approximates the true tracheal midpoint and, therefore, is a good landmark on a chest radiograph. This point allows for movement of the tube tip with head positioning and of the carina with respiration. The tube tip can be placed near the IMP by the suprasternal palpation technique. This method, therefore, is useful in emergency situations or on initial intubations to avoid improper position of the tube tip prior to radiograph verification.


Pediatric clinical faculty structure and teaching hospital function. An organization of clinical faculty has been formed at Rainbow Babies and Childrens Hospital, Cleveland, Ohio, to help coordinate the mutual goals but sometimes conflicting needs of practicing pediatricians and a teaching hospital. The organization has been active in developing and conducting educational experiences for students, house officers, and practitioners. It has contributed to efforts to improve ambulatory and inpatient care. Collaborative clinical research projects involving practitioners and academicians are planned. We know of no other existing similar organization. We propose that other institutions with similar needs consider this mechanism to help improve their academic and patient care programs.


Group practice in a university-based general pediatric clinic: a preliminary report. The format for health-care delivery has changed from a solo to a group model at the General Pediatric Clinic of Chicago Wyler Children's Hospital. Evaluation of the new model after the first year has demonstrated a significant improvement in the attitudes of house staff toward their experience in primary-care delivery.


The pediatric internship as a teaching technique: a comparison of learning experiences in five hospitals. Five interns joined in a collaborative study to assess their learning experiences during the internship year. A 3 times 5-inch data form was completed for each patient for whom the intern was responsible. Information was gathered on demongraphic characteristics of the patient, the teaching that involved this patient, and what skills were acquired. Nearly 30% of the patients were under 1 year of age; 55% were boys. More than one half of the contacts were in an outpatient or emergency department. Over 80% of the patients had not been seen before; continuity patients made up less than 9% of the contacts. Well-child care was the largest care category (19%), followed by respiratory problems (15%) and injuries (9%). About 40% of the contacts involved a teaching input, mainly from residents, attending physicians, and faculty. Care skills most frequently acquired were physical examination (49%), reading (15%), and interviewing (11%). Cross-tabulations showed that most learning was reported for inpatients, for patients with rare diseases, and when some teaching was involved.


A chart audit peer review system in an ambulatory service. A system of providing rapid review of ambulatory patient records using a set of criteria was developed and tested. Of 337 records selected for review, 25% were not reviewable. Of the remaining 75%, virtually one half proved to be lacking in one or more of the established criteria. Deficiencies tended to occur most often in criteria related to the physical examination of the child. Physician compliance with the criteria could not be conclusively shown to improve during the five-month study period, although physician acceptability was judged as good. A large percentage (47.3%) of deficient records could be corrected by the responsible health professional. The chief advantages of the system are that it is rapid and easy to perform. It focuses on the major service provided by the facility, i.e., acute medical care, and on the performance of the individual providing that service.


Screening procedures for neuroblastoma: false-negative results. Since elevation of 3-methoxy-4-hydroxymandelic acid (VMA) excretion frequently occurs in patients with neuroblastoma, simpler methods have been developed to differentiate between high and low levels of VMA in the urine, namely the LaBrosse spot test and VMA test strips. Sensitivity of these two procedures depends upon the concentration of VMA in the urine rather than total amount of VMA excreted. VMA excretion data from patients with neuroblastoma show that even though the total amount of VMA excreted in a 24-hour period may definitely be elevated, the concentration of VMA in the 24-hour urine samples may vary greatly from one day to the next and from one patient to another. Therefore, these rapid screening methods for urinary VMA would appear to be too insensitive to use as the sole means of detection or follow-up of patients with neuroblastoma since these techniques require a high concentration of VMA.


Children as passengers in automobiles: the neglected minority on the nation's highways. The federal government is urging states to enact legislation requiring that safety belts be worn. Small children are excluded from this requirement. Following the neonatal period, the motor vehicle poses the greatest single threat to a child's life. Contrary to popular belief, more small children are killed and injured inside the vehicle than outside. The marjority of children now ride in cars unprotected or inadequately protected. Standard safety belts are unsuitable for small children. Special devices capable of distributing collision forces over a large body area should be used. Original children's car "safety" seats were not intended to protect their occupants in a crash. These seats became subject to a government safety standard in April 1971. Shortly  after this standard came into effect it was shown to be grossly inadequate in ensuring crash protection. A proposal for revising current safety criteria was issued in March 1974--to be implemented in September 1975. A number of progressive companies have developed crashworthy devices. As public awareness is being awakened, manufacturers are begining to find that "safety" sells. Child crash protection  has not escaped the attention of safety experts whose writings are reviewed, but it is shown that lack of parent awareness and concern can be directly related to sparse and often inaccurate and incomplete information available. Many popular child care books ignore the subject entirely. Because correct use of devices is of such critical importance, instructions detailing what parents must do should be prominently displayed on a permanent label attached to the device. Observation of car seats in use confirms that correct installation of the device itself and/or proper securement of the child within the device in the exception rather than the rule. The development of child restraints is of recent date. It is essential to keep abreast of advances made in the field. Earlier recommendations may be superseded by more recent research findings. It has been found that parents are most receptive to new ideas prior to and immediately following the birth of a new baby. In-hospital instruction of expectant and new parents is showing promising results. There is an urgent need for pediatricians to become involved in this vital area of "preventive medicine".


Non-treatment of screened children with intermediate blood lead levels. An aggressive screening and follow-up program for children at risk for lead poisoning was conducted by a nurse practitioner in a small family practice unit. Subsequent venous blood lead determinations untreated cases show the natural fall in lead level over 12 to 18 months. Many of these children would have been chelated by others, yet individualized, specific, personalized care by a nurse practitioner permitted monitoring without treatment even in persistently leaded environments. No chelation therapy was necessary until the third summer, when coincident with a long, hot, dry season, the city's abatement system because nonfunctional. Non-treatment requires close follow-up, a relatively small population, and cooperation from the city.


Diagnosis of pneumothorax or pneumomediastinum in the neonate by transillumination. Transillumination of the neonatal chest is described as an aid in the diagnosis of pneumothorax or pneumomediastinum. Sudden severe tension pneumothorax or pneumomediastinum can be localized for immediate treatment and the success of therapy can be immediately assessed using transillumination.


Thrombotic complications of umbilical artery catheters: A clinical and radiographic study. Catheterization of the aorta via the umbilical artery provides a convenient route for monitoring arterial blood pressure, for obtaining blood specimens for measurement of blood gas tensions and chemistries, and for the infusion of fluids and pharmacologic preparations in sick newborn infants. Use of this technique may be accompanied by a number of complications of which thrombotic phenomena are the most common. Twenty-three of 98 (24%) newborn infants undergoing umbilical artery catheterization were found to have thrombotic complication determined by aortography. No correlation was present between the duration of time that the umbilical artery catheters were in place and the occurrence of thrombotic complications. From paired aortographic or aortographic and autopsy studies in 24 patients, it was concluded that if a thrombotic complication did not occur early, none was likely to occur subsequently. One patient was considered to have died as a direct result of a thrombotic complication. Aortography is a safe, simple, and reliable technique for the early detection of thrombotic complications of umbilical artery catheters. Umbilical artery catheterization is not without risk and careful selection  of patients for this procedure is indicated.


Long-term follow-up for immunity after monovalent or combined live measles, mumps, and rubella virus vaccines. Antibody in human subjects persisted without substantial decline for 8 years after mumps vaccine (Jeryl Lynn), for 6 years after measles (Attenuvax), for 5 1/2 years after rubella vaccine (HPV-77 duck), for 5 years after measles-mumps-rubella and mumps-rubella combined vaccines, for 4 years after measles and rubella, and for 2 years after measles-mumps vaccines, the longest periods tested. Protective immunity against mumps illness persisted through the eighth year. The patterns for antibody following vaccination parallel those for natural infection and indicate that immunity will be lasting. Subclinical reinfection evidenced by antibody increase was commonly seen in persons who had been vaccinated, much as follows the natural infection.


Factors associated with the development of asthma and hay fever in children: the possible risks of hospitalization, surgery, and anesthesia. The clinical impression of an allergist that early surgery increases the risk for developing asthma or hayfever was followed up by three studies. First, 115 children with pyloric stenosis were followed up and showed above-average prevalence figures. Second, 47 boys with hernia repairs were followed with similar results. Thirdly, 202 children reporting asthma or hay fever were studied for early hospitalizations. They reported more hospitalizations under the age of 2 than did a control group.


Pyloromyotomy: Does surgery in infancy increase allergy? One recently published article and several presentations at international meetings have suggested that there is an increased incidence of allergic and asthmatic manifestations, as compared with the general population, if a child undergoes surgery before the age of 2 years. The study explores the incidence of asthma and allergy in a group of patients who presented with pyloric stenosis. All of these underwent surgery. The technique of the study was a retrospective telephone review and the response rate was approximately 40%. The data show that there is no increase in the incidence of allergy or asthma in this population as compared with nationally reported figures.


Validating the content of pediatric outpatient medical records by means of tape-recording doctor-patient encounters. Information in 51 tape-recorded physician-patient encounters was compared with information written in the patients' medical records. Diagnoses, chief complaints, scheduled appointments, non-drug therapy, and diagnostic studies were uniformly well-recorded. Medication names were well-recorded but dosages were not. Characteristics of care such as levels of function, probable cause of illness, reason for follow-up, and compliance were recorded poorly. Patients were more likely to known about and understand their diagnosis, and names, dosage, and intended function of their medications when this information was written in the record than when it was not. These findings indicate a relationship between the quality of medical records and the effectiveness of care.


Children with encopresis: A descriptive analysis. During an 18-month period, 102 children with encopresis were seen in a general pediatric outpatient clinic. Through interviews and questionnaires, extensive historical information was obtained. Children were compared with respect to demographic characteristics, bowel-function histories, early training and management, and present manifestations of bowel dysfunction. A wide variety of historical backgrounds and manifestations was observed. It was found that many of the traditional generalizations about encopresis could not be substantiated. It is suggested that a very individualized approach to this problem be adopted and that children with encopresis be investigated carefully to uncover early developmental problems, critical life events, and the precise physiology and dynamics of present bowel dysfunction.


Evaluation of visceral larva migrans by radioimmunoassay systems. A 9-year-old child with miliary pulmonary infiltrates, eosinophilia, and hyperimmunoglobulinemia E recovered rapidly cover a four-week period. Subsequent analysis of serum samples by a solid phase radioimmunoassay technique demonstrated IgM, IgE, and IgG antibodies to Ascaris suum antigen which declined following the acute phase of the illness in parallel with a decline in serum IgM, IgE, and IgG concentrations. Precipitating antibodies in serum against Ascaris antigen were demonstrated. The diagnosis is considered to be toxocariasis or ascariasis. The application of sensitive radioimmunoassay techniques of this type should provide a method of earlier diagnosis and the demonstration of rapidly changing antibody levels a method of confirming the diagnosis in parasitic diseases.


Ultrasonography: an aid in the diagnosis of masses in pediatric patients. Ultrasound was used to evaluate 100 pediatric patients suspected of having a mass. This technique was found to be useful in several ways: (1) differentiation of cystic, solid, and complex masses, which is not usually possible with routine roentgenographic evaluation; (2) delineation of free fluid collections from those that are loculated or contained within masses; (3) measurement of the size of both normal and abnormal structures; and (4) confirmation of the abnormal position or absence of organs. Ultrasound was used as a supplement to routine clinical and radiologic studies.


Extracapillary proliferative glomerulonephritis in children. The clinical course and renal pathology of 17 children with acute extracapillary proliferative glomerulonephritis is reported. Patients with systemic diseases associated with renal involvement were excluded. The onset followed streptococcal infection in ten; of these, four have died, one has been transplanted, and the remaining five have completely healed. The mean follow-up of the latter five patients was 32 months (range, 18 to 57 months). Of the other seven patients without evidence of precedeing streptococcal infection, two have died, two have been transplanted, and the remaining three all have hypertension, proteinuria, and reduced creatinine clearance. The mean follow-up of the latter three patients was 29 months (range, 14 to 38 months). The initial renal histopathologic changes and their progress in later renal biopsies is described. The role of various therapeutic agents is discussed. The prognosis in acute extracapillary proliferative glomerulonephritis following streptococcal infection appears to be better than in ones without preceding streptococcal infection.


Body composition at menarche: The Frisch-Revelle hypothesis revisited. Figures for height and weight and derived values for total body water and fat were assembled for groups of girls with a variety of disorders to examine their conformity to the hypothesis of Frisch and Revelle that menarche occurs at a "critical" weight associated with a decline in metabolic rate and achievement of a characteristic body composition. The groups examined included girls with unusually tall stature, central idiopathic precocity, precocity associated with hypothyroidism, girls with hypothyroidism but lacking signs of sexual maturation, one group with gonadal dysgenesis, and another of girls with obesity. Girls with tall stature significantly exceeded the "critical" weight of 47.8 kg before achieving menarche but had onset of menses in accordance with the body composition hypothesis. The body composition of girls with idiopathic sex precocity was altered toward that at menarche of normals although the patients were much smaller and younger. The same trend was exaggerated in girls in whom precocity was associated with hypothyroidism; equally hypothyroid girls showing no signs of adolescent development had body compositions similar to those of age-matched controls. Girls with gonadal dysgenesis showed an alteration in body composition paralleling that of normals between the ages when the latter begin the pubertal growth spurt and achieve menarche. Girls under 8 years of age with simple obesity had an even greater percentage of body fat than normal menarchal girls but showed no signs of puberty. It is concluded that menarche is not necessarily triggered by achievement of a critical body weight or lowering of metabolism. Neither are the rising levels of estrogen in adolescence solely responsible for the characteristic increase in body fat. Only the data on girls with obesity failed to accord with the generalization that, when the ovaries are competent, menarche is highly correlated with achievement of a characteristic body composition. The observations, particularly in gonadal dysgenesis, suggest the pituitary gonadotropins may play a role in determining body composition in menarche.


Dark adaptation and short-wavelength backgrounds decrease perceived size. The effects of background luminance, contrast, and background wavelength on the perceived size of small line figures were studied at mesopic levels of light adaptation. Perceived size diminished at low levels of background luminance. The effect disappeared at high levels of luminance. Perceived size of luminous circles increased as a logarithmic function of background luminance when the background intensity did not exceed 25 td(1). The strength of the size effect decreased as a function of circle diameter from 0-125 to 2 deg of visual angle(2). Perceived size of small luminous circles, subtending less than 0-5 deg, also increased as a function of contrast at low values of contrast but at very high values of contrast there was a decrease in perceived size. Background luminance had the same effect on the perceived size of circles as on the perceived size of spatial cycles in gratings. Control experiments led to the conclusion that dark adaptation is the primary source of the size effects. The main evidence for this conclusion was obtained from a demonstration that the same background luminance produced either an increase or a decrease in perceived size, depending on the adaptational state of the eye. It was also found that a shift from cone vision to rod vision contributes to the effects, for a stimulus looked smaller on a short-wavelength background than on a long-wavelength background. The size effects can be predicted from the changes of receptive-field properties of single neurones under corresponding conditions of stimulation, if it is assumed that the perception of size is mediated by size-specific channels formed of single neurones. Stimulation that leads to an activation of small receptive fields appears to indicate to the brain the presence of small retinal images. If small receptive fields are experimentally made responsive to larger retinal images, an underestimation of size results.


Pattern learning and the control of behaviour by all-inhibitory neural network hierarchies. An all-inhibitory network which learns by selective disconnection of synapses is described. This is similar to an 'associative net'; however, it is simpler in that its neurons do not need to perform arithmetical operations, and the net does not require additional threshold modulating neurons in order to cope with input patterns which are incomplete, or of differing sizes. This fundamental simplicity permits a greater variety and density of connections. These can multiply the capacity of the nets to learn complex sequences of patterns without being saturated. An "all-connected" net is described which has the holograph-like capacity to reconstruct the whole of an input pattern from part patterns without involving delays or threshold devices. All of these inhibitory nets can construct themselves by means of simple random growth processes, without incurring any loss of learning capacity of holographic properties. Similarly, synapses can be allowed to potentiate with use, so that reaction times are progressively reduced by practice, without any reduction in the quality of the performance. Inhibitory connections between arrays can give patterns in one array control over the allocation of channels in which lower arrays store learned information. A description is given of a model, decentralised, inhibitory hierarchy consisting of inter-connected arrays which can learn to execute goal-directed TOTE-type programs of behaviour by means of a simple 'putting-through' procedure.


The orientation anisotropy and orientation constancy: a visual evoked potential study. Two experiments were conducted on the orientation anisotropy in which averaged visual evoked potentials (VEPs) were recorded from the occipital scalp. The first experiment confirmed the findings of Maffei and Campbell (1970) that obliquely oriented gratings alternated back and forth produced smaller-amplitude VEPs than when the gratings were oriented horizontally or vertically. Since no asymmetry was found in VEPs produced by a Julesz figure presented under identical conditions, it was concluded that direction of displacement could not have been contributing to the effect. In a second experiment head tilt of the subject was manipulated together with grating orientation and the results indicated that the orientation anisotropy is retinally rather than gravitationally referenced. It was concluded that the site of orientation constancy is located either at higher levels of the primary visual system or in the second visual system.


Recalibration by pairing: a process of perceptual learning. When two cues which normally agree in determining perceived depth are experimentally paired so that they designate discrepant values for the depth dimension, an opportunity is created for the recalibration or re-evaluation of the cues. Experiments which show recalibration of the oculomotor cues and recalibration of binocular disparity as a result of pairing these cues with other discrepant cues are reviewed. The locus of change is related to the relative dominance of different cues and the contribution of allocation of attention in determining dominance is discussed. Implications of recalibration by pairing for understanding ontogenetic development are considered. It is suggested that some cues may acquire their effectiveness as a consequence of pairing during development.


The role of figure orientation and apparent depth in the perception of the horizontal-vertical illusion. An experiment was performed which examined the role of figural orientation directly, and the role of an inappropriately invoked size-constancy mechanism indirectly, in the actuation and magnitude of the horizontal-vertical illusion. When the vertical line of the stimulus figure was aligned above the horizontal line, the illusory effect was significant and positive; in contrast, when the vertical line was located below the horizontal line, the illusion was negative. Under the assumption that a vertical line can appear as a foreshortened line in depth, these findings support an explanation based on the operation of a misapplied size-constancy mechanism.


Monocular and binocular rivalry between contours. The temporal characteristics of binocular and monocular rivalry between orthogonal gratings of the same or complementary colours were investigated. Rivalry was measured in terms of the dominance of either grating or the visibility of composites comprised of parts of both gratings. The total duration for which either grating was dominant was significantly longer in binocular rivalry between gratings of complementary colours. A comparison of binocular and monocular rivalry indicated considerable phenomenal differences between them. Dominance in binocular rivalry corresponds to the visibility of one grating alone; this occurs rarely in monocular rivalry, which is characterized by fluctuations in the distinctiveness of the gratings. The changes in distinctiveness are influenced by colour in a similar manner to that in binocular rivalry, and the frequencies of fluctuations are higher for gratings of complementary colours.


Perceiving the language of films.

Perceiving the language of films. Children appear to be familiar with the language of film makers or at least to perceive and remember films less well when the rules of this cinematic language are broken. In this experiment a simple action sequence filmed from a static viewpoint was made up into two films of four shots. One film was edited according to the rules of directional continuity specified by Hollywood cinema, that is the four shots were presented so as to preserve the subject's direction of movement across cuts. The other film was edited disregarding these rules. Apart from this difference both films were identical. Children aged seven, nine, and thirteen years watched either of these films and reconstructed the action using pictures representing the four shots. The children who saw the conventional version were better able to reconstruct what they had seen than those who saw the unconventional version.


Blood organochlorine pesticide levels in Virginia residents. This study attempts to establish 1972 baseline levels for 31 organochlorine pesticides and industrial chemicals in postmortem human whole blood in Virginia. These pesticides and industrial chemicals have been detected previously in other parts of the food chain and environment. In the present study DDT and its metabolites, DDE and TDE, were detected most frequently and at highest levels. DDT and DDE tended to appear more frequently as people grew older although TDE levels remained constant. Dieldrin and lindane showed peak levels in the middle age group. Analyzing distribution of pesticides in blood by sex showed that females had higher levels of lindane and dieldrin and males had higher levels of DDT, DDE, and TDE. Analyzing racial distribution showed blacks with higher levels of DDT, TDE, and DDE and indicated little difference from whites for lindane and dieldrin. Higher levels were found in Richmond and Norfolk than in the Fairfax and Roanoke regions.


Fate of copper in ponds.

Fate of copper in ponds. Treatments of 3 ppm copper sulfate (CuSO4-5H2O) were applied to two small aquatic systems in Michigan in 1971. To study the pathways of the added copper, samples of water, sediment, aquatic macrophytes, filamentous algae, and fish were collected and analyzed by atomic absorption. Sampling was initiated before treatment and continued up to 4 months in one of the ponds. Dissolved copper concentrations in water decreased rapidly immediately after treatment and then gradually to background levels. Reduction of dissolved copper may have involved initial precipitation of an insoluble compound, such as malachite, followed by sediment adsorption of soluble copper complexes and copper released from aquatic plants. Levels of copper in sediment increased rapidly at first and gradually later in the study. Aquatic plants and filamentous algae accumulated very high levels of copper. Uptake rates were apparently affected by water temperature and growth stages of the plants. Data indicate that aquatic macrophytes developing in one pond 10 weeks after treatment took up copper from the sediment. Although green sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus) accumulated copper soon after treatment, levels returned to background later in the study.


Preliminary survey of ethylenethiourea residues in the Canadian food supply, 1972. A preliminary monitoring program was initiated in 1972 to determine ethylenethiourea (ETU) content of the Canadian food supply. Of 167 samples analyzed, 90 were domestic and 77 were imported. Samples were analyzed by electron-capture/gas-liquid chromatography. Thirty-three percent of the samples contained detectable ECU residues; most of these were 0.020 ppm or less. Highest levels, 0.047 and 0.083 ppm, were found in canned spinish and orange peel respectively.


Pesticide and mercury residues in commercially grown catfish. In 1970, 54 commercial catfish farms in Arkansas and Mississippi were sampled for pesticide and mercury residues. Pesticide residues above FDA action levels were detected in 15 percent of the fish samples. Data on residues in sediment, fish feed, and source water suggest that fish were not being contaminated from these sources. Average fish residue per county was, however, strongly correlated with the percent of total acres planted in cotton and soybeans. Results strongly suggest that cotton production was the primary source of contamination. Actual routes of movement have not been clearly defined but aerial transport seems most probable.


Residues of methoxychlor and other chlorinated hydrocarbons in water, sand, and selected fauna following injections of methoxychlor black fly larvicide into the Saskatchewan River, 1972. In May 1972, 0.309 ppm methoxychlor black fly larvicide was applied in a single test on the North Saskatchewan River. Eight to nine days later residues of 0.05-0.10 ppm methoxychlor occurred in sand 21-22 km downstream from the point of injection. Methoxychlor was not detected in water, insect larvae, shellfish, or muscle tissues of three fish species on the same sampling date. Perhaps because of relatively high oil content in goldeye fish, methoxychlor residues in muscle tissues were 1.0-1.5 ppm in 8 percent of those sampled, 0.21-0.99 in 21 percent, and 0.02-0.20 in 37 percent. In 34 percent of the goldeye fish no residues were detected. Goldeye and other fish collected before or 17 weeks after this injection did not contain detectable levels of methoxychlor. River water in two samples of the injected slug of water collected 6.5 km downstream from the point of injection contained 0.14 and 0.16 ppm methoxychlor. The suspended solids filtered from these sample contained 40 and 47 percent of this methoxychlor (437 and 892 ppm, respectively). Thus methoxychlor may act selectively against filter-feeding species, especially black fly larvae.


Organochlorine residues in starlings, 1972. During the fall of 1972 starlings were collected from 130 sites in conjunction with the National Pesticide Monitoring Program. They were analyzed for DDT and its metabolites, dieldrin, heptachlor epoxide, benzene hexachloride, polychlorinated biphenyls and, for the first time in the series, oxychlordane and HCB. Mean DDT and dieldrin residue levels have declined significantly since 1967 and a regression analysis suggests that levels of DDT and its metabolites should fall below a mean of 0.1 ppm for the 1974 starling collection.


Degradation of parathion applied to peach leaves. Parathion was applied to peach trees in three different formulations 70 days before harvest. Leaf samples were taken periodically through the 70-day period and gas-liquid chromatographic analyses were conducted for dislodgable and penetrated residues. Analyses were also conducted for paraoxon and the s-ethyl isomer of parathion. Punched samples were compared to whole-leaf samples; generally residue levels for both types corresponded closely. A new experimental formulation, encapsulated parathion, produced highest levels of total parathion throughout the 70-day study, but even this formulation resulted in low total residue levels around 1 ppm at time of harvest. Degradation of the s-ethyl isomer of parathion was generally very rapid in all formulations studied. Dislodgable residues of paraoxon may be significant in some formulations and should be included in parathion degradation studies. Much of the parathion found on peach leaves throughout the growing season was dislodgable residue, but this depended considerably on the formulation used.


[Control of incoercible vesical hematuria by selective vesical embolization. 7 cases of radium induced cystitis and of recurrent tumors]. A means of stopping dramatic vesical hemorrhage due to a hemorrhage cystitis secondary to radiation therapy or a tumor: the selective vesical arterial embolisation.


[Arterial embolization in the treatment of neoplasic tumors]. Eight cancer patients treated at the centre François-Baclesse at Caen underwent arterial embolisation using Spongel. The technique was usually used in the presence of a contraindication to operation. In certain cases the problem was that of controlling haemorrhage following tumour invasion or secondary to complications of radiotherapy, under which circumstances was most successful. In addition, it was possible to reduce pain resistant to medical treatment. The method appeared to be a useful therapeutic complement post-radiotherapy for hypervascularised lesions.


[Study on Kveim's test. Positive tests in agammaglobulinemia. Comparison with TTL in presence of Kveim's antigen]. 1. -Kveim's test (KT) was carried out on 104 patients for whom the diagnostic of sarcoidosis was suspectid. The positive results of KT correlate with other clinical, radiological and histological criteria. 2. - Two patients with idiopathic agammaglobulinemia (AGG) had positive KT. In two other cases of AGG, KT was negative. Two hypothesis are discussed: a) the association of AGG and infraclinical sarcoidosis favorized by the immunological deficit; b) false positive reactions, which raise the question of the specificity of KT. 3. - Lymphocyte transformation test in the presence of Kveim's antigen (LLT-K) was carried out simultaneously with KT 46 times. Among 30 positive KT only 20 LLT-K were positive. Among 16 negative KT 3LLT-K were positive. LLT-K was the only test carried out on 47 subjects. It was negative among 19 healthy control subjects, 19 allergic subjects and 7 patients suspected of sarcoidosis. LTT-K was positive among 3 patients suspected of sarcoidosis and 1 patient with Hodgkin's disease. 4.- LLT-K like other in vitro tests, presents some advantages over the in vivo tests, in particular the rapidity of response. We found that LTT-K was less often positive when compared with KT. The question of specificity is also raised for LTT-K.


A mass attack by the biting midge culicoides nubeculosus (Mg.) (Dipteria, Ceratopogonidae) on grazing cattle in Denmark. A new aspect of sewage discharge. A consequence of sewage discharge into a shallow marsh pool was large-scale hatching of the biting midge Culicoides nubeculosus from the recipient and mass attacks by this blood-sucking insect on grazing cattle. Culicoides nubeculosus is a great nuisance due to the painful bite and in Denmark it is a potential vector of pathogenic agents. In the future, these aspects of sewage discharge must be borne in mind.


[Parathion poisoning in cattle (author's transl)]. In a herd of dairy cattle half of the cows showed symptoms of acute poisoning. Blood- and hair samples were taken from seven of the cows, of which two did not show any clinical symptoms. The cholinesterase activities were in all the blood samples decreased to about 10 per cent of normal and parathion was found in all hair samples. The cholinesterase activities rose gradually during a 31/2 month period to the lower part of the normal range. Parathion was found in samples from the inner walls of the cowstable, and it was concluded that the poisoning was probably due to parathion spraying in the stable, while a suspicion of winddrift as a source of poisoning was rejected as less probable.


Characterization of atypical Actinobacillus lignieresii isolated from ducks with salpingitis and peritonitis. Actinobacillosis in a disease of world-wide occurrence among cattle and sheep. The present paper records the recovery from ducks with purulent salpingitis of an organism having cultural, morphological and biochemical properties very closely related to Actinobacillus lignieresii.


[On the origin of the horseshoe. A preliminary report (author's transl)]. The question of the origin of the horse-shoe is reconsidered and China is pointed out as the site of origin. The theory is put forward that the Mongolian people living north of China and having constant fights with the Chinese have learnt the horseshoes with nails from the Chinese and that the Huns on their travel westwards have brought this type of horseshoe to Europa. The theory is substantiated from authoritative sources. The Chinese ministry of agriculture and forestry has given the information that horseshoes with nails have been used here for more than 2000 years. The possibility exists -- however -- that the Mongolians having good knowledge of the treatment of various metals, have produced the first horseshoes and given the Chinese the knowledge of that procedure.


[Isotope angiography in peripheral arterial pathology]. On the basis of 67 isotope angiograms, the results of which were compared with those of arteriography, the authors present the advantages, indications and limitations of this technique.


[Fate of polycythemia vera treated by radioactive phosphorus. Apropos of a series of 303 patients followed for 12 to 24 years]. Three hundred and three cases of polycythaemia vera were treated between 1949 and 1961 using radioactive phosphorus, the minimum follow-up for the patients in the group being 12 years and the maximum 24 years. Two hundred and thirty three patients died, the median duration of survival after the first treatment with phosphorus being 10 years (i.e. 12 years after the diagnosis was made). 59 patients died of the vascular complications of polycythaemia, 76 of leukaemia or myelofibrosis. The total number of deaths due to vascular complications up to the tenth year exceeded the total number of deaths due to haematological complications (leukaemia or myeloid metaplasia). At the end of the 11th year the opposite was true. From the ninth year onwards, acute leukaemia and myelofibrosis represent more than 40 p.cent of deaths of known cause and the annual probability of death from a haematological cause for the surviving patients increases regularly until the fifteenth year when it reaches approximately 5 p.cent of the patients at risk. However the median survival of patients dying from acute leukaemia or myeloid splenomegaly is slightly longer than that of patients dying from other causes, this confirming that these disorders would appear to represent the terminal phase in the course of polycythaemia vera.


[Evaluation of sectorial fluid movement by measurement of the global impedance of the body. Study during hemodialysis and during treatment with major diuretics]. During courses of haemodialysis or treatment with powerful diuretics, the clinician at the present time bases his actions on blood pressure levels which reflects blood volume and on weight variation which is dependent on water loss. The authors show, in studying variations in total body impedance at 5kHz and 1kHz and their ratio R, that there exists another method of observation which complements the basic notions provided by blood pressure levels and baseline weight. They were thus able to detect the possible formation of cellular oedema due to excessively rapid osmotic depletion. The method makes possible the evaluation of these sectorial fluid transfers when they occur, even though they are not evident clinically. This easy to use method is perhaps less rapid than the usual means of observation but is nevertheless more rational and provides information on electrolyte balance.


[Laparotomy with splenectomy in Hodgkin's disease. Critical study of results in 123 patients]. 123 laparotomies with splenectomy have been performed in 3 groups of patients. 1. 40 patients with infra-diaphragmatic relapses afer mantle field radiotherapy for supra-diaphragmatic disease. 2. 45 previously untreated patients. 3. 37 stages III B patients treated by intensive chemotherapy before splenectomy. Anatomical findings suggest that hematogenous dissemination may be responsible for spleen involvement and that spleen involvement may be suppressed by chemotherapy. In view of these data, chemotherapy in association with radiotherapy seems to be justified even in patients with apparently localised forms since the spleen may be involved in such patients at clinical presentation of the disease. From the preliminary results of studies which aim to appreciate the effectiveness of chemotherapy on splenic lesions, the need for routine laparotomy and splenectomy should be reevaluated.


[Acute intermittent porphyria. Detection of asymptomatic carriers of the genetic defect]. Measurement of uroporphyrinogen I synthetase activity in red blood cells indicates a 40-50 p.cent decrease in patients with intermittent acute porphyria (30 +/- 6 units) when compared to normal control subjects (50 +/- 8 units). This measurement makes relatively easy the detection of asymptomatic carriers of the genetic defect, as early as the first day of life.


Psychotropic drugs in the management of psychiatric emergencies. Antipsychotic drugs are the agents of choice for the management of acute functional psychoses. In most instances, hourly intramuscular injections of chlorpromazine or haloperidol will bring tranquilization within six hours or less. These drugs also are useful in amphetamine-induced psychoses. In psychosis resulting from hallucinogen, however, an antipsychotic drug should be given only as a last resort. In many organic psychoses, including psychosis due to ingestion of an atropine-like drug, use of anti-psychotic drug should be avoided. Before any drug is given to a psychotic patient, an effort should be made to identify an organic brain syndrome, characterized by clouded sensorium, disorientation, and poor recent memory.


Effect of feed additive antibiotics on chickens infected with Eimeria tenella. Six experiments were carried out to study the effect of feed additive antibiotics on body weight, mortality and oocyst production in chickens infected with coccidiostat-susceptible or -resistant strain of E. tenella. Levels of antibiotic and coccidiostat in fed (mg./kg.) were: thiopeptin, 2; zinc bacitracin, 20; penicillin, 12; chlortetracycline, 22; amprolium plus ethopabate, 125 plus 8; clopidol, 125. All experiments included 7 groups; 2 of these groups were uninfected and infected controls, and the 5 remaining groups were all infected and given diet containing antibiotic, amprolium plus ethopabate, antibiotic and amprolium plus ethopabate, clopidol, or antibiotic and clopidol. Chickens in each group were fed respective diet beginning one day prior to coccidia exposure. In two experiments, infection with a coccidiostat-susceptible strain resulted in severe clinical coccidiosis in chickens on the basal ration and on thiopeptin-diet, but dietary thiopeptin prompted recovery of body weight. In one experiment where chickens were infected with a strain resistant to amprolium plus ethopabate and clopidol, birds on dietary thiopeptin attained higher body weight than birds on the basal ration. In three experiments when a strain resistant to amprolium plus ethopabate was inoculated, birds given the basal ration, bacitracin, penicillin, chlortetracycline, or amprolium plus ethopabate diet developed cecal coccidiosis. Chickens on ration containing antibiotic alone attained higher body weight than chickens on the basal ration. Combination of antibiotic and amprolium plus ethopabate resulted in higher weight attained than amprolium plus ethopabate alone. Clopidol suppressed development of coccidiosis, and the combination of antibiotic and clopidol resulted in higher gains than in clopidol alone.


Cholesterol metabolism in the chicken.

Cholesterol metabolism in the chicken. Four hundred and eighty, sexed (White Leghorn) chicks were divided so that each sex was fed one of eight rations to determine the effect of sex, dietary cholesterol, and stearic, oleic, and/or linoleic acid on cholesterol deposition in blood, liver and aortic tissues. After 5 months on the dietary regimen, 3 cockerels from each of the rations were orally administered 100 mC. sodium-1-C14-acetate and 200 mC. cholesterol-1,2-H3 to determine whether body tissues contained cholesterol from endogenous or exogenous origin. After 5 months on the experimental rations it was observed that male birds had higher free cholesterol levels than did females. The addition of cholesterol (2%) and fatty acids (6%) to ration increased free cholesterol levels in liver and aorta. Cholesterol stored in livers and aortas occurs principally as free cholesterol while blood cholesterol was in esterified form. Cholesterol levels in both liver and aorta are primarily of endogenous origin.


Altered feathering of chicks caused by T-2 toxin. Dietary T-2 toxin (0, 1, 2, 4, 8, and 16 mug./g.) was fed to 4 groups of 10 chickens at each treatment level from hatching until 3 weeks of age. Growth inhibitory levels (4, 8, and 16 mug./g.) caused abnormal feathering which appeared dose related. The chickens were sparsely covered with short feathers protruding at odd angles in comparison to controls. There were few feathers on the base of the neck, on the anterior dorsal surface of the wing, and on the side and back adjacent to the tail. Feather tips frequently were constricted and bent downward while the quill could have a reverse curve. A literature survey suggests that T-2 toxin may cause this effect through a nutritional imbalance.


Water balance of the hen during egg formation. Laying hens consume more water on days when an egg is laid, than on non-laying days; the daily water intake is more than double--from 115 g. to 255 g. and the number of drinks taken increases proportionately. The weight of water in the egg produced is only 32 g. The requirement for this excess of water implies a considerable metabolic stress associated with egg formation. Studies have been carried out to determine why this water is consumed, and its metabolic fate. Water ingestion started to increase about 12 h. before oviposition; it rose steadily until about 2 h. before lay, then fell sharply. Urine minute volume showed similar fluctuations. At the time when the urine output fell just before lay, plasma osmolarity was higher than usual; this might be predicted from the drop in water consumption. Alterations in the water content of the oviduct were not sufficient to explain the increased fluid intake, and total body weight remained constant in spite of the consumption of the additional 140 g. water. These findings suggest that the water has a metabolic role, as it is not retained as a net fluid surplus.


The effects of 1, 2, 3, 4, 10, 10-hexachloro-1, 4, 4a, 5, 8, 8a-hexahydroxy endo, exo-5, 8-dimethionaphthalene (aldrin) and sodium ethylenebisdithiocarbomate (nabam) on the chick. Fertile White Leghorn chicken eggs were injected on the tenth day of incubation with either 0, 10, 20, 30, 40 or 50 p.p.m. Aldrin or 0, 5, 10 or 15 p.p.m. Nabam and allowed to hatch. Aldrin neither did induce any deformities nor had any effect on hatchability, thyroid weight and histology. However, within three days after hatching, there was greater mortality in chicks treated with higher concentrations of the pesticide. Aldrin at higher concentrations significantly reduced 125I uptake by the thyroids. This was evident in the iodine fractions after chromatographic separation of the thyroid extracts. Nabam not only reduced hatchability but also induced deformities in the higher concentration groups. The thyroids showed an increase of resorption vacuoles in the colloid. Even though the thyroid weights increased in all experimental groups, a significant increase in 125I uptake was seen only in the 15 p.p.m. injected animals. This group also showed a reduction in radioactivity of thyroxine fraction but an increase of 125I in tyrosines. The significance of these results are discussed.


Interaction of aflatoxicosis with heat stress. An earlier study reported an increased resistance of chickens to an acute lethal heating episode (43 degrees C. and 45% relative humidity) during aflatoxicosis. This varies from other stresses investigated which interact with aflatoxicosis to make chickens more sensitive to the stress factor. The effects of graded doses of dietary aflatoxin (0, 0.625, 2.5, 5.0, and 10.0 mug./g.) on the body temperature, on body fat, on the serum glucose, and on the effect of varying the severity of the heat stress were measured. Both serum glucose and total body fat were decreased significantly (P less than 0.05) by doses of 2.5 mug./g. and above. Cloacal temperature was decreased slightly but significantly (P less than 0.05) in chickens fed 5 or 10 mug./g. for 12 days or longer. The mean survival time of birds exposed to a heat stress of 40 degrees C. and 45% relative humidity did not vary with the dose of aflatoxin while a milder stress of 37 degrees C. and 45% relative humidity caused chickens fed aflatoxin at 2.5 mug./g. or above to show decreased survival times (P less than 0.05) in comparison to the controls. These data can be rationalized by assuming that the lessened burden of body fat during aflatoxicosis accounts for the increased survival time in a severe (43 degrees C. and 45% relative humidity) heat stress but that other parameters related to physiological stress play a dominant role during a less severe but more prolonged heating episode. It seems likely that the hypoglycemia, hypothermia, and lessened body fat also account for the previously reported increased sensitivity to a lethal cold exposure during aflatoxicosis.


Growth and maturation of testes in young coturnix and modification by exogenous FSH, LH, and testosterone--a stereologic evaluation. Groups of coturnix males kept on continuous light from hatch were used in a study of testicular development. Testes were sampled from birds 4, 11, 18, 25, 32 days, and 4 months of age. Exogenous FSH at 1 and 2 mg., and LH and testosterone at 0.5 and 1.0 mg., were given daily for 3 days before the birds were killed for study at 4, 18, and 32 days of age. The following parameters were recorded: testes weights and volume, seminiferous tubular length and the ratio of length per mm.3 volume, supporting or Sertoli cell nuclear volume, volume of gonocytes, pre-leptotene spermatogonia, primary spermatocytes, and total intratubular volume. The stimulatory effect of exogenous LH and FSH on testes weight and volume, length/unit volume ratio of seminiferous tubules, and total intratubular component of the testes was most apparent at 4 days of age. The inhibitory effect of testosterone was significant at 18 and 32 days in all of these parameters. At 4 days, the 0.5-mg. level reduced the volume of the Sertoli cells and the gonial cell group. Full spermatozoa production was observed when the total length of the seminiferous tubules reached 30 m. It may be concluded from this study that young coturnix are similar to the chick in response to exogenous LH and FSH at 4 days of age. This response was observed even though the coturnix were on continuous light.


Replacing dietary methionine and cystine in chick diets with sulfate or other sulfur compounds. A purified diet deficient in the sulfur amino acids and sulfate was fed to chicks in tests designed to compare the effectiveness of several sulfur compounds in sparing the sulfur amino acids. The addition of a mixture of methionine and cystine to this diet increased growth rate and feed efficiency more than any of the other additions. Sulfate improved performance as much as any inorganic sulfur source tested. Taurine, sulfite, thiosulfate, and sulfur also had value. When graded levels of sulfate were added to diets with sulfur amino acid levels about 0.2 and 0.3% below the level required for optimum performance, the weight gain and feed efficiency response curves were curvilinear. Most of the response to sulfate was produced with a level of 200 p.p.m., but 500 to 660 p.p.m. was needed to produce the maximum sparing effect. The sulfur amino acid requirement was found to be about 0.075% less with 0.1% sulfate in the diet than without it when growth rate was the criterion. When feed efficiency was the criterion, the requirement was reduced about 0.05% by sulfate.


Scanning electron microscope studies of turkey semen. Turkey spermatozoa were examined morphologically with the aid of a Cambridge Stereoscan electron microscope. Mean dimensions, in micra, of normal spermatozoa were: acrosome, 1.8; nucleus, 9.1; midpiece, 4.8; tail, 61.0; total length 76.7. The maximum diameter of the head at its widest was 0.8 microns. There was an increase in abnormal spermatozoa in yellowish semen, with coiling being the most prevalent abnormality. The spherical-shaped cells with granular appearance, also present in yellowish semen, were ascertained to be large macrophages. Occasionally, macrophages filled with phagocytized sperm cells were evident. Hens inseminated with yellowish semen had 57.6 percent fertility compared to 92.1 percent for hens inseminated with control semen.


Thermoregulatory behavior and body temperature in chicks of willow grouse (Lagopus lagopus lagopus). Clocal temperatures (Tcl) of outdoor living captive willow grouse chicks (Lagopus lagopus lagopus) were found to increase from 39.4 +/- 0.5 degrees C. the first day to 40.3 +/- 0.5 degrees C. the twelfth day after hatching. Average Tcl of adults was 40.7 +/- 0.3 degrees C. When left alone for 30 min. in a controlled test environment providing temperatures ranging from 21 degrees C. to 46 degrees C., the one day old chicks preferred significantly higher ambient temperatures than eight day old birds. Tcl was significantly lower in the chicks tested the day after hatching than in the older chicks. It is concluded that the chicks' thermoregulatory behavior is essential for maintaining homeothermia, and that the birds' thermoregulatory set-point is low the day after hatching and climbs to adult level during the first week.


The effects of environmental temperature on fertility of the domestic fowl. Three experiments were conducted to determine the influence of environmental temperature upon the fertility of domestic fowl. It was found that a cold environmental temperature depressed testes growth and delayed spermatogenesis in maturing cockerels. There was also a highly significant difference in the fertility of mature males kept at different environmental temperatures. Males kept at 19 degrees C. had higher fertility than males kept in either 30 degrees or 8 degrees C. The effects of environmental temperature on female fertility was also studied. Fertility was significantly lower in the hens kept at 30 degrees C. than that of similar groups held at an environment of 8 degrees C.


The effect of methionine deficiency on body weight, food and energy utilization in the chick. The effect of dietary methionine deficiency was studied in broiler chicks. Graded levels of methionine: 0.25, 0.32, 0.39 and 0.46% in semipurified, soybean meal-corn starch diets were used as treatments. Food intake, body weights and body components were determined. Results show that a moderate methionine deficiency (0.32 and 0.39%) had no effect on growth and energy metabolism expressed as metabolizable energy, productive energy, heat production and tissue gains. Increased food intake in these two groups was reflected not as increased weight gain, but as greater quantities of tissue fat. The experimental group with severe methionine deficiency (0.25%) showed depressed body weight gain, food intake and efficiency of food utilization, with some increase in heat production. Therefore, in general, two types of nutritional responses occurred in broilers, based upon the severity of the methionine deficiency.


Prevention of Marek's disease using a filtered air positive pressure house. A facility for keeping chickens free of Marek's disease (MD) was obtained by adopting a system of filtered air under positive pressure (FAPP) for ventilation, and by imposing restrictions on entrance of articles, materials and personnel. During 741 days of the FAPP operation, there has been no evidence of infection with MD virus even though MD was enzootic in flocks housed on the same farm.


Effects of short term phosphorus deprivation on laying hens. An experiment was conducted to determine the effects on laying hens of ingestion of a phosphorus deficient diet for 6, 9, or 21 days. Four experimental groups consisting of 3 replicates of 5 Leghorn pullets averaging 90 percent egg production were maintained in individual cages. A diet containing corn, soy, and meat and bone meal was formulated to contain 0.39 percent total P on a 90 percent dry matter basis (LP). A normal P diet (NP), 0.64 percent total P, was obtained by supplementation with an inorganic P source. Group 1 (Control) was fed the NP diet for 21 days. Groups 2, 3 and 4 were fed the LP diet for 6, 9, and 21 days respectively. Groups 2 and 3 resumed consumption of NP diet after 6 and 9 days. Individual egg production and egg weight were recorded daily. Individual hen determinations of serum P, g. shell/cm.2 surface area, and feed consumption by replicate were made at 3 or 4 day intervals. The serum P of Group 1 averaged 5.01 +/- 0.31 mg./100 ml. over the 21 days. Serum P was significantly reduced after 3 days of consuming the LP diet. Serum phosphorus of Groups 2,3, and 4 were 2.95 +/- 0.18, 3.03 +/- 0.24, 3.13 +/- 0.32 mg./100 ml. respectively after 6, 9, and 21 days of consuming the LP diet. Serum P returned to control levels within 4 days after resumption of the NP diet by Groups 2 and 3. There were no differences in feed consumption, egg production nor any detrimental effects on egg weight or shell calcification despite the low serum P. Body weight gain of the hens fed the phosphorus deficient diet for 21 days was significantly reduced. At the end of the experiment femur density was determined; the hens which had consumed the phosphorus deficient diet for 21 days had reduced femur density (osteoporous) compared to the control group or the hens fed the phosphorus deficient diet for only 9 days. It is concluded that pullets in 90 percent production can tolerate this low P diet for at least 9 days without apparent detrimental effects.


Enhanced immunosuppression in bursectomized chickens by passive transfer of antibody. Three trials were conducted using commercial broiler cockerels to determine the immunological consequences of passive transfers of immune sera to bursectomized chickens. The data illustrate that passive transfers of immune sera to juvenile chickens which had been surgically bursectomized immediately after hatching caused a suppression of the primary hemagglutination response which was greater than that caused by bursectomy or passive transfer of immune sera alone. However, when these same birds were given a secondary challenge of antigen the resulting secondary hemagglutination response was normal. These data indicate that the passive transfer of immune sera to bursectomized chickens greatly limits their ability to mount primary humoral responses, while not affecting the ability to develop anamnestic immunity.


The effect of time of day of insemination and oviposition on the fertility of turkey hens. Turkey hens were inseminated at five different times of the day to determine the effect of time of day of insemination and the stage of egg formation on fertility. Results showed that fertility resulting from the 6 p.m. insemination was significantly greater than at 8 a.m., 10 a.m., 1 p.m. or 3 p.m. Conversely, fertility was significantly lower at 1 p.m. than at the other four times. Fertility was significantly lower if hens were inseminated during the last 10 hours that the egg was in the uterus and during the approximate time of ovulation than during the other times of egg development.


Toxicity of pokeberries (fruit of Phytolacca americana large) for turkey poults. Fresh pokeberries were picked from the cluster and liquified in a blender for 3 to 5 minutes. The liquified berries were mixed into a standard turkey starter at the rate of 0, 2-1/2, 5 and 10%. Addition was at the expense of the total diet. Two separate experiments were conducted with day old Broad White turkeys. Weight gain, mortality and gross lesions were observed to 3 weeks of age. Growth rate was reduced with each increase in level of pokeberries. In Experiment 1, 3-week gains were 376, 354, 314 and 205 g. for 0, 2-1/2, 5 and 10% pokeberries. Weight gains in Experiment 2 were 339, 317, 254 and 172. Mortality was 33 and 43% in the two experiments when 10% pokeberries were fed. Lower levels produced erratic mortality results. Poults fed 5 and 10% pokeberries exhibited ataxia and occasional inability to walk. The hock joints frequently became enlarged and crooked. Ascites was observed in some birds at all dietary levels of added pokeberries. The gall bladder of dead birds was frequently much enlarged and filled with brownish fluid rather than normal bile.


The cloacal gland--an external indicator of testicular development in coturnix. The quantitative relationship between cloacal gland size and testes weight during the stages of initial growth, involution and recrudescence is described. Cloacal gland foam was found to be a reliable indicator of testes size and function. The mean testes weight associated with the first presence of cloacal gland foam was 377 mg. and this occurred at a mean age of 29 days. The physical measurement of the cloacal gland provides a valuable noninvasive method of predicting testicular activity especially suited for long term experiments involving multiple measurements where a few coturnix may be used repeatedly (as their own control) rather than periodic killing of a large group of animals.


Carcass composition studies. 2. Influences of breed, sex and diet on gross composition of the carcass and fatty acid composition of the adipose tissue. A study was conducted to determine the effect of breed, sex and diet on the carcass composition of chickens. Male and female chicks of the Light Brahma, White Plymouth Rock, Single Comb White Leghorn, Black Jersey Giant and Dark Cornish breeds were fed three diets of widely varying calorie:protein ratios to four weeks of age. The Black Jersey Giant chickens attained the greatest weight at 4 weeks followed by the White Plymouth Rock, Dark Cornish and Single Comb White Leghorn with the Light Brahma growing the slowest of the strains tested. Significant differences in the quantity of moisture, protein, total lipid and ash present in the total carcass was found among certain breeds. The Light Brahma contained the largest amounts of total lipid, 10.4%, followed by the White Plymouth Rock, 10.2%, Black Jersey Giant, 9.5%, Single Comb White Leghorn, 8.8%, and the Dark Cornish, 8.6%. Both sex and diet also caused differences in the total body composition. Significant differences in the amounts of certain fatty acids in the carcasses of the various breeds were found; however, these differences were not great.


Body growth response to selection and crossbreeding in dwarf and normal broiler-type chickens. A normal-bodied broiler population and one dwarfed by the dw sex-linked gene were each sub-divided into two lines. AGB (normal) and D2B (dwarf) were selected only for superior body weight at eight weeks of age. AGE (normal) and D2E (dwarf) were sublines in which prospective dams were selected for large egg weight while prospective sires were selected for eight-week body weight. Selection for large eight-week weight of both sexes in both dwarf and normal populations during each of three generations resulted in superior growth rate to that observed when the dams were selected for egg weight. When the selected dams were tested each generation for their ability to produce superior broiler crossbreds using a commercial broiler sire strain, AGE proved superior to AGB in the second and third generations while D2B and D2E dams produced crossbreds with similar broiler weights. Normal-bodied dams which produced crossbreds having superior growth to that of the dwarf dams in the first generation lost most of this superiority by the third generation in sons and the second generation in daughters. Reproductive fitness was superior within the dwarf lines as well as in their ability to produce more crossbred progeny.


Distribution of selenium in egg white and yolk after feeding natural and synthetic selenium compounds. Practical diets containing various selenium levels, with and without selenite supplementation, were fed to hens. Eggs were then collected over a 14-day period to determine how quickly changes in dietary selenium affected egg white and yolk selenium. Changes in egg white selenium content were rapid and essentially completed seven days after changing the selenium content of a practical diet. Changes in egg yolk were not yet completed by 14 days. When selenium from practical feedstuffs was fed, the selenium content of dried egg white was about equal to or greater than the selenium content of dried egg yolk. When selenite was fed, the selenium content of dried yolk was higher. Feeding selenomethionine resulted in more selenium in egg white than in egg yolk. Feeding selenocystine resulted in more selenium in egg yolk than egg white, a pattern similar to that from feeding selenite. The data suggest that selenocystine is not incorporated into protein but is metabolized to an inorganic selenium compound.


Comparison of pressure differential procedures for dipping turkey hatching-eggs in gentamicin solution. Studies have shown that antibiotics introduced into hatching eggs can destroy certain egg-borne bacterial pathogens. An investigation was made to determine an effective procedure to introduce gentamicin solutions into turkey eggs. The findings showed that a pressure differential (PD) method using a reduced pressure of 38 cm. (15 inches) Hg for 15 minutes followed by an absorption period of 15 minutes at atmospheric pressure was an effective method which did not cause excessive egg cracking nor adversely effect hatchability. In excess of two times more fluid was absorbed using a PD method compared to an established temperature differential procedure. For maximum absorption, eggs should be washed at collection time and stored for a period of up to two weeks prior to dipping.


Relationship of embryonic development to egg weight, hatch weight, and growth in Japanese quail. Relationships between egg, embryo, hatch, two-week and four-week body weights of three quail lines differing in growth rate were investigated. Two of the quail lines had previously undergone 29 generations of selection for increased four-week body weight, and the third line was a nonselected control. Selected lines produced heavier eggs, larger 10 to 11 day embryos, and larger chicks. Percent embryo weights were similar for all three lines indicating that correction for egg size eliminated differences in embryo weight. Percentages of hatch weights of selected lines were significantly (P less than .01) larger than comparable percentages in the control line. Correlations between egg and embryo weights were of low magnitude but correlations between egg and hatch weights were large (.7 to .8). Mean regression coefficients for four-week body weight on egg weight were 5.11 and 2.67 g. in trials 1 and 2, respectively. Relationships between egg, embryo, hatch, and body weights of Japanese quail appeared to be of the same general magnitude as those observed in the domestic fowl.


Comparison of various cryoprotective agents on washed chicken spermatozoa. 5. Effect of glucose, sucrose and polyvinylpyrrolidone. A study was conducted to determine the effect of glucose, sucrose and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) on the viability of chicken spermatozoa. Levels of 4, 8 and 12% glucose, sucrose or 12% PVP significantly reduced the motility and fertilizing capacity of spermatozoa. Adding the compounds in bulk or fractions eliminated the drastic effect of 4% sucrose on motility and fertility but proved ineffective with 4% glucose or 12% PVP. A complete loss of motility with no effect on fertility was observed with 6% PVP was combined with either ethylene glycol or DMSO.


Erythrocyte lifespan in dwarf and normal pullets from growth selected lines of chickens. Mean erythrocyte lifespan was estimated, using a 51Cr tagging procedure, in dwarf and normal sisters from lines selected for high and low body weight at eight weeks of age. Correlations between body weight, packed cell volume and erythrocyte lifespan were not significant. Significant differences were found among genotypes for body weight and packed cell volume, but not for lifespan of erythrocytes.


The lethal nature of "wiry" mutation in the domestic fowl. A study of the effect of normal environmental conditions on newly hatched chicks with the feather mutant described as "wiry" (Fiser et al., 1973) was carried out. The results indicated that the abnormality should be classified as a potential facultative lethal expressed after hatching.


Decreased plasma carotenoids during ochratoxicosis. Two field cases of underpigmented broilers were reported; investigation revealed the presence of ochratoxin but not aflatoxin. A laboratory experiment revealed that dietary ochratoxin A at levels of 4.0 and 8.0 mug./g. lowered significantly (P less than 0.05) the concentration of plasma carotenoids which are an accepted indicator of carcass pigmentation.


Estimation of protein content in the plasma of young chickens by a refractometric method. This study was conducted to evaluate a refractometric method for determination of protein content of chicken plasma. Comparison of the results obtained with the refractometric and the Lowry methods indicated that refractometry, when used with due caution in a typical laboratory situation, provided a simple, fast, inexpensive and valid method for determining the protein content of plasma from young chickens.


A new dwarf isolate in the chicken: a possible new allele at the dw locus. A dwarf isolate has been found in the chicken which is due to an allele other than dw at the dw locus. The distribution of offspring from males heterozygous for dwB and the allele responsible for the dwarf isolate was inconclusive with respect to whether they were the same allele or not. However, the results of this mating in conjunction with the appearance of the pure line dwarf isolate birds led the authors to tentatively conclude that the dwarf isolate was not due to dwB but rather to a new allele at the dw locus designated dwM.


In vitro reactivity of chicken hemagglutinins in the presence of corticosterone. Exogenous corticosterone at the levels of 0, 2, 4, or 8 mug./100 ml. in excess of physiological levels did not affect the in vitro reactivity of chicken anti-SRBC hemagglutinins. These results suggest that immunosuppression which results via stimulation of the adrenal cortex is not attributable to a direct effect of corticosterone on antibody reactivity.


Intestinal and uterine calcium-binding protein in laying hens during different stages of egg formation. Intestinal and uterine calcium binding protein (CaBP) was measured in hens during egg shell calcification, or uterine inactivity, using an immunoassay technique. No changes in CaBP level were detected in either organ, even when the uterine inactivity continued as long as 17 hours.


The effect of non-protein energy source and age on the blood glucose level and the muscle glycogen content of young chicks. Blood glucose levels and skeletal muscle glycogen concentrations were observed in 160 male chicks. Observations were made in four age groups and two diets. Carbohydrate diets resulted in higher blood glucose levels and glycogen concentrations than did fat diets. Age was found to significantly influence glycogen concentration in both diets. The linear regression of skeletal glycogen on blood glucose levels was significant in carbohydrate fed chicks.


Investigation and standardization of prothrombin times in chickens. This investigation was undertaken to standardize the determination of the one-stage prothrombin time for use with chickens. Homologous thromboplastin was essential and the most active thromboplastin was obtained from chickens four-weeks old or younger. Acetone-dried brain powder could be stored for at least 4 months at -15 degrees C. without loss of activity. Extraction of brain powder with 0.025 M CaCl2 at 42 degrees C. gave better thromboplastic activity than the standard extraction with physiological saline at room temperature. Thromboplastin solutions could be stored in ice water for only 6 hours without loss of activity. Citrate concentration had to be increased from the usual 0.10 M to 0.18 M to prevent premature clotting of plasma. Plasma donor age had no effect on the prothrombin times. Freezing and thawing as well as storage of plasma in the frozen state increased the prothrombin times. Using the best conditions, the mean prothrombin time for 1200 birds determined over a 6-month period was 9.4 sec. with an individual range of 7.18-11.4 sec. This represents a significantly lower prothrombin time with lower variability than that reported in the literature.


Investigation of some materials as dry binders for direct compression in tablet manufacture. Part 3: Effect of diluents. The effects of lactose and dibasic calcium phosphate as diluents on the dry-binding qualities of tragacanth, polyethylene glycol 4000, polyvinylpyrrolidone and mannitol were investigated. The type, concentration and particle size of the diluent appeared to influence the flowability and the binding properties of the binders investigated.


Investigation of some materials as dry binders for direct compression in tablet manufacture. Part 4: Effect of disintegrants. The effects of starch and Veegum as disintegrants on the dry-binding qualities of tragacanth, polyethylene glycol 4000, polyvinylpyrrolidone and mannitol were investigated. The type of diluent and its concentration in the powder blends appeared to influence the binding efficiency of the binders investigated.